Saturday, January 26, 2013

Vapers will need to step up now more than ever before

Despite the incredible promise that e-cigarettes hold for the millions of smokers in the U.S., the FDA has been decidedly hostile towards e-cigarettes and other reduced harm alternatives to smoking. The FDA attempted to characterize e-cigarettes as pharmaceutical products ,which would have resulted in a de facto ban. When that didn’t work, the FDA continued its war against tobacco harm reduction, misinforming the
public about the relative risks associated with e-cigarette use.

The FDA has announced that in April it will issue guidance on e-cigarettes and will regulate them as tobacco products. Depending on its approach, the FDA could effectively decimate the e-cigarette industry through excessive regulations. In light of the actions of the FDA to date, vapers should hold little hope that the FDA's proposed regulations will be reasonable.

We need to take every opportunity to voice our concerns to those who are in a position to put pressure on the FDA, namely, the White House and Congress:

But don't stop there!2. Go to http://whoismyrepresentative.com/ and identify your senators and representatives in Congress. Fill out the provided web-based contact form, call, and send letters to your legislators letting them know:

• How e-cigarettes have positively impacted your life.

• You are concerned about the FDA’s announcement that it plans to issue a deeming regulation that would apply all of the restrictions within the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009 ("Tobacco Act") to e-cigarettes and other tobacco products. http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/PublicHealthFocus/ucm252360.htm

• Many of the Tobacco Act provisions, written with tobacco cigarettes in mind, are inappropriate for other tobacco products.

• Refusing to allow sale of products introduced after February of 2007 may force all of the most effective e-cigarettes off the market.

• You want legislation that will require the FDA to conduct an extensive study of the relative health risks of all tobacco and nicotine products before it can issue a deeming regulation under the Tobacco Act.

Please take the time to let your congressional representatives and the White House know how important it is that the FDA is required to regulate e-cigarettes lightly and reasonably!

Watch your email and the CASAA News Blog for another Call to Action in about 2 1/2 months regarding actual submission of comments to the FDA regarding these "deeming regulations." Submitting public comments, once the FDA announces its intended regulations of electronic cigarettes in April, will be the most important action CASAA members and vapers will have to make to date.It will be imperative to get hundreds of thousands of e-cigarette consumers and those who support them and Tobacco Harm Reduction policies to actually submit comments directly to the FDA this coming April, so please be ready to act!!

No comments:

Post a Comment

About the Author

Kristin Noll-Marsh is vice president of the Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association. CASAA is a non-profit organization that works to ensure the availability of reduced harm alternatives to smoking and to provide smokers and non-smokers alike with truthful information about such alternatives.

This blog is Kristin's personal views and opinions and does not represent the views or policies of CASAA.